By Sheryl Caissie
You might say, “Self-proclaimed Christians ‘talk the talk,’ but they don’t ‘walk the walk.’ They’re just a bunch of people living in ‘holy hypocrisy.’ Therefore, how can I believe there’s any truth to the Christian faith?”
A Flawed Character
How many people do you know who claim to be Christians have shown any of these behaviors: gossip, boasting, hatred, judgment, stinginess, lying?
Probably all of them. Why? Because all humans have a sin nature. After God created a perfect world with two perfect people, they were disobedient to him. In biblical terms, they sinned (Rom. 5:12). And that sin is carried on throughout humanity. The Bible says that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23).
A Perfect Character
There is only one who is perfect—God himself. Jesus said, “No one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18). God is holy, and he cannot be in the presence of sin. He is also a perfect judge, and he punishes those who sin. The Bible tells us that the “wages of sin is death,” that is, a spiritual death (Rom. 6:23). Everyone who sins (and that’s all of us) deserves punishment, and God’s just punishment is that upon our physical death, we are destined to an eternal sentence in hell.
Christianity Is Transformation, Not Worldly Perfection
But God, who is rich in mercy, has provided a way for us to avoid that punishment. He sent his Son, Jesus—fully man and fully God—to take on the punishment for all those who believe in him.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved. Ephesians 2:4–5
Jesus gave up his life, was crucified, and died on a cross. Then, he rose from the grave and was victorious over sin and death. Jesus took on our punishment so that, if we believe in him, we can go to heaven instead of taking our punishment in hell. This is called imputed righteousness (Rom. 4:22–25). We are forgiven by God. And “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9).
But get this. . . being saved (from God’s wrath and our due punishment) does not make us perfect human beings. Rather, it spiritually transforms us, making us into a new creation, which should make us want to be more like Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). We are “born again”—we become perfect in God’s sight, but we remain imperfect while here on earth. And so, even with the best of intentions, Christians continue to sin. That is why you know Christians who gossip, lie, judge, and more. True Christians are spiritually transformed, but they still need to become more Christ-like.
So, because Christians continue to sin doesn’t mean Christianity isn’t true. It means that forgiven people are positionally perfect in God’s eyes but still need to work on becoming more like Jesus every day—we need to be sanctified, or as the Bible says, we must work out our own salvation (Phil. 2:12).
A Call to Action
Don’t discount Christianity because people aren’t perfect. People are by nature sinners; we are hypocritical, imperfect beings. But that doesn’t negate the fact that there is a God who is perfect and who loves us so much that he was willing to sacrifice his Son so we could have fellowship with him and have eternal life (John 3:16). Still not convinced about Christianity? If I’m wrong, then no harm done in my believing. But if you’re wrong, there are everlasting consequences. Don’t you think it’s worth it to investigate the claims of Christianity yourself?
Recommended Reading
- Timothy Keller, Making Sense of God: Finding God in the Modern World, (Penguin Books, 2016).
- Kenneth Samples, Christianity Cross-Examined: Is It Rational, Relevant, and Good? (RTB Press, 2021).
- Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus, (Zondervan, 2016).
- The Holy Bible (Bible Gateway at www.biblegateway.com has many versions you can read online.)